GGV Capital splits US, Asia business

Jenny Lee (left), managing partner of GGV Capital / Image credit: Tech in Asia

GGV Capital has announced that it will divide its business into two different firms, with one focusing on Asia and the other on the US.

The US firm, which will be led by Glenn Solomon, Hans Tung, Jeff Richards, and Oren Yunger, will invest in companies from markets such as North America, Latin America, Europe, and Israel.

Meanwhile, the Asia firm, headquartered in Singapore, will be headed by Jenny Lee and Jixun Foo and will focus on investments in China, Southeast Asia, and South Asia. GGV Capital’s funds that are denominated in Chinese yuan will keep operating separately under the Jiyuan brand.

The restructuring process is expected to be finished by the end of the first quarter of 2024.

GGV Capital has US$9.2 billion in assets and has supported some of the most successful companies in both Asia and the US, including Alibaba, Airbnb, Grab, Xpeng, Udaan, and Slack.

Its decision may be influenced by growing challenges and political pressure on US companies to reduce their investments in Chinese tech. The ongoing tech war has been exacerbated by a boosted interest in AI, with the two countries now fighting for dominance in the space.

GGV Capital’s split mirrors that of Sequoia Capital earlier this year. The latter broke up its business into three separate firms: Sequoia Capital for the US and Europe, Peak XV Partners for India and Southeast Asia, and HongShan for China.

A source previously told Tech in Asia that Sequoia has been facing issues such as portfolio-related conflicts and financial mismanagement, which may have been factors leading to the split.

While Shailendra Singh, managing director at Peak XV Partners, told Tech in Asia before that Sequoia entities “will eventually compete with one another,” he kept mum on the influence of heightened tensions between the US and China on the split.

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